Yesterday we told you that Apple released a third build of Mac OS X 10.6.8 to developers. At the time there were no known issues with the build and developers were asked to focus on AirPort, Networking, Graphics Drivers, QuickTime, VPN, and the Mac App Store. Now it turns out that the Mac App Store may be the biggest component of that 10.6.8 upgrade.

German site fscklog was the first to point out that the release notes for the 10.6.8 build specifically notes that this point upgrade to Lion will "Enhance the Mac App Store to get your Mac ready to upgrade to Mac OS X Lion." The release notes all but confirm that Apple will be pushing the Mac App Store as the primary upgrade mechanism for Mac users. Also, if 10.6.8 is released before WWDC, which starts on June 6, it could be a signal that Apple is set to release Mac OS X 10.7 Lion sooner than most people expect -- which is something we've heard they might do.